China Bound Ltd.

At the foot of the Great Wall, the quaint village of Mutianyu has established itself as a relaxing destination for both day visits and overnight guests. China Bound Ltd. (CBL) began investing in the area in 2006 and has built up a social enterprise offering ecologically friendly dining, lodging and cultural facilities for the tourist market. The private investment company was founded by Jim Spear and Liang Tang in 2006, and today operates three businesses: 1) The Schoolhouse Restaurants at Mutianyu Great Wall, 2) The Schoolhouse Art Glass, and 3) China Countryside Hotels.

CBL first took over the village's former school house and converted it into a family friendly restaurant offering western food. The school house building was kept intact and classrooms were converted into dining rooms. They have since developed two other restaurants, Xiao Lou Mian and RoadHouse, by converting old village homes into a noodle restaurant and a pub. The Schoolhouse art glass business, located next to the school house, produces glass handicrafts and is also a source of entertainment. The three restaurants and the art centre are popular with Chinese guests, overseas tourists, and business conference travellers who stop over on their way to and from the Great Wall.  The businesses are a model of sustainable tourism for Beijing and the surrounding areas.  The Schoolhouse was constructed to have a low energy footprint.  The buildings have incorporated energy efficient radiant heating, passive solar, thermal paned windows and insulation for energy conservation. The facility grows its own food or procures food locally to minimize the impact of the supply chain and local homemade dishes are prepared without any additives.

Under the lodging business, China Countryside Hotels ("CCH"), CBL offers ten holiday rental homes for daily, weekly, or monthly rental that complement their other existing eco-tourism businesses. CBL leases under-utilised properties from the local government or from private owners and re-develops them into boutique ecological friendly accommodations. CCH leases the properties from the local owners at market rates thus benefitting local owners who gain additional rental income for these once abandoned properties.

CCH has also developed a unique business structure that allow investors to invest in tourist oriented accomodiation in around Mutianyu. The company provides a unified marketing platform and a common management system for a variety of village homes in the area. They are currently developing two new inns and have identified several other sites for small motel development.  CCH is looking to raise additional funds to realize these projects and accelerate progress.

CBL generates significant employment opportunities for the villagers and creates demand for enterprise development of local services. They provide training and employment to support 30 full time and 10 part time staff who come from Mutianyu village as well as surrounding areas. The majority of villagers are trained and employed as hospitality staff, however younger and more literate villagers are employed within the CBL office. CBL has a flexible work roster that allows staff to generate additional income while only working part time.  This particularly benefits rural women who have to juggle the responsibilities of looking after their family and running their households. Their eco-lodging facility building projects support more than 100 local laborers and craftsmen and 20 local outside service providers sustain their properties. All their outdoor cleaning, gardening, and farming are provided by a local company that was founded by a neighbour with the help of CBL.

CBL has recently gained recognition for its work. In 2009, CCH was deemed the Best Sustainable Communities Development in Asia-Pacific at Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP), and was named one of the Top Five Hotels in China by WildChina, a ecologically sensitive and sustainable travel company. It was also granted four green stars by Eco Hotels of the World.